Page 11 - Demo

11Somebody said, \they propose?\commercials. In 15 seconds, you can find out what the world thinks you value because that's the button they're trying to push. They're appealing to your basic motivation. You can pretty well wrap it up in three words. We've talked about these before.a.Pleasure.Our culture values pleasure. It's the number one industry in America right now%u2014the entertainment industry. It grosses more money than any other single industry. We are a very sensual society. We just want to have fun, so if it feels good we do it. That's avalue that the world proposes.b.Possessions.You know Americans believe in life, liberty and purchase of happiness, don't we? We are consumed with consuming. We kind of live by the motto that the one with the most toys is going to win. The world is silently, but very forcefully giving us the message:Your self worth is equal to your net worth.c.Power %u2013Prestige %u2013Position.They're all linked together. It's the third leg of the cultural value system. Look at the commercials. Have you ever noticed how they insidiously want you? The guy puts on his racing gloves, those dark glasses, gets inside that sport coupe and the announcer says, \ the road.\and the credit card which says, \perceived value of power?Understand this. Contrary to the devil's propaganda, God is not against all those things. There are so many people who believe the lie that God is some prude who says, \Christian, you can't have any pleasure, no fun. If you're a Christian, you can't have very many possessions. You've got to almost be a pauper. If you're a Christian, you've got to be a meek, weak, little worm. Don't you ever have any power?\says. No! No! God never says that. He never says you cannot have pleasure, He never says you can't have possessions. He never says you can't have some power. What God says is those can't be your values. Those cannot be the core desires of your heart, or you'll miss the maximum life.John, who was in his nineties and an aged apostle, said %u201cDo not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world; the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and doescomes not from the Father but from the world.%u201d (NIV) The New King James Version states %u201cDo not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world,